New Jersey has been known for its culture of mobsters, hooligans, and political dirty tricks for many decades. When I was a kid, anytime the topic of New Jersey was discussed, my Dad would smile and say – “Yep, that’s where all the crooks are”. He always had a twinkle in his eye when he said that. Naturally, it made me want to move to New Jersey as soon as I was old enough. New Jersey sounded really cool, like a land of fun and excitement…especially, while growing up in the coal mine region of Pennsylvania.
Eventually, I did reach that magic age when I could leave home. It took a round-about route and several years, but the day finally came when I moved to New Jersey. I searched for the crooks and hoodlums, but didn’t find many – and this was during the wild 60s. South Jersey was great. There were interesting ‘activities’ at the Jersey shore, but not any real crooks in my circle of friends… well, maybe one or two shady characters. I heard stories about when Jack Nicholson lived in the same town. He must have been quite a hit at the high school prom years before. I met fishermen, teachers, garage mechanics…but no members of the Mafia. No real big time crooks.
Now many years later, I live in beautiful, mythical Vermont. I listen to the news reports of Governor Christie and the traffic jam. My initial reaction was – so what. Political tricks happen all the time. What’s all the hype about. After sleeping on the topic overnight, my reaction is the same, only more so today.
Where I live, a disabled vet has recently been the victim of assault by an elected public official. There is no question of proof. The threat was accidently caught on a live microphone and recorded on video. It seems to me that this is serious and should result in something – anything….but this is Vermont. No legal action. No massive public outcry. The public official will probably be re-elected during the next election.
The Vermont governor was recently the subject of an investigation for taking advantage of a ‘vulnerable adult’ in a questionable real estate ‘deal’. Not much public outcry there. He will be re-elected, no doubt. No-bid $200 per hour contracts have been awarded to political buddies. Almost no one noticed. More than 300 cases of abuse of the elderly/disabled have been reported to the State. No real action taken. Abuse continues.
The entire State, from the Massachusetts border to the Canadian line, is famous for cronyism – or the ‘ol boys network’ as it is called here. By comparison, New Jersey seems rather tame and lawful.
Back to Gov. Christie and the traffic jam. How could that happen? Political tricks are part of the game. They happen all the time.
Just one personal anecdote…during the last election cycle, I was the Socialist candidate for Vermont Attorney General. One day during campaign season, as I happened to be driving past the Democratic Campaign Headquarters, I noticed something was different. The very large, professionally manufactured campaign sign for the Democratic candidate for Attorney General was missing from the front window. In its spot some unknown person had placed a home-made campaign sign supporting me. I burst out laughing and wondered who could have done that, and why. I had not even visited the democratic campaign headquarters. In addition, I am known to be anti democrat/anti republican. When I stopped laughing, I pulled into a parking place and went into the headquarters. I said just one word, while laughing again. I asked: “Why?”. It seems that one of the young campaign workers had become impressed with my platform and took it upon himself to campaign for me, even while on duty at the democratic main site. I had never met this campaign worker before, but we talked. He told me that he had gotten ‘chewed out’ by the big boss for removing the official sign and replacing it with the one he made for the opposition candidate – who was a Socialist no less!
The young campaign worker had to find a way of dealing with the boss issue. He was very creative. He figured out the schedule of the boss. When the boss was expected to visit, the young worker would simply switch the sign back to the official one. The campaign worker had nothing to gain. His actions could have cost him his job. But he continued to do what he believed to be the right thing. His ‘conspiracy’ lasted all through the campaign season, right up to election day.
The moral of the story is that sometimes political ‘dirty tricks’ happen without the knowledge or consent of those up the chain of command. Maybe, just maybe, Gov. Christie did not have any knowledge of the traffic jam. This is not meant to support Christie… heaven knows I would never support any republican or democrat.
Rosemarie Jackowski
Jackowski is a peace activist and author of BANNED IN VERMONT. She has lived in Hoboken, Jamesburg, Manasquan, Lavallette, Seaside Park, Ocean City, Cape May County and too many other locations in New Jersey to remember. She now lives in Vermont.
Odd message?
Though you seem to think this funny, I wonder if someone took down your sign, particularly if it was the flagship of an office for which you had paid, you would be quite so full of good humor about it. I think that your applause is ill founded. It taints your other “corrupt Vermont” memes and makes Cristie’s corruption seem venal though it is more of the same for him. The assertion that ” Political tricks are part of the game. ” is just the sort of thing that encourages and establishes them. Shame on you.
You criticize Vermont
You criticize Vermont government and, indeed, the state of Vermont for it’s ‘cronyism’ ;it’s lack of response to alleged misdeeds yet seem to think the same kind of actions -if they are done because someone ‘believes’ in them are just fine. Shutting down the GW Bridge deliberately and vindictively was not a “political trick”. It was an act of extreme, coordinated vandalism that put thousands of commuters -including young children and the sick and injured-at risk. It was a despicable, immature and reckless decision made by arrogant government workers who somehow felt it was their right to make this decision. Maybe Christie knew -maybe he didn’t (although as more information comes out it looks like he probably had some awareness of it long before he acknowledged the incident) What matters is that this kind of behavior is rampant in our government-in all 50 states-at all levels. It is attitudes like yours – that this is just part of the game- that allow it to continue. It’s not just part of a game. It’s taking the trust and loyalty of the people who elected you and twisting that to do whatever you want -regardless of the outcome. AS long as it provides you with the outcome you were seeking or ,perhaps, just a few moments of revenge.
And, that Democratic campaign worker who kept your sign up? He/She wasn’t following their beliefs. If they believed in you and your campaign so much the ethical thing to do would have been to quit the job in the Democratic campaign and come to work for your campaign. But, where’s the fun in that, huh?
Thanks for the comment
Your assumption about my platform could not be more wrong. I was the first candidate in the USA to include in my platform the prosecution of Bush.
Your suggestion that I should control what happens in a democratic or republican campaign office is way off base. I had no control or responsibility there. It would be like my coming into your house and telling you how to live. It is none of my business.
Of course corruption is important. The most horrific corruption is the slaughter of children by US drones. The campaign worker believed that the war crimes and crimes against humanity take priority over anything that happens in a political office.
There is a big difference between political campaign ‘mischief’ and crimes against humanity. Please learn the difference. Maybe it would help if you looked at some of the photos of the children with their heads blown off by US bombs.
Your initial post was not
Your initial post was not about crimes against humanity. It was about “political mischief” ; the fact that ‘tricks’ happen in all political camps.
Of course, the killing of children or any human beings is horrific and wrong and should not be condoned. The United States has been involved in wars and the killing of people since it began and, sadly, I imagine our desire and need for war will always be present.
But again, campaign ‘mischief” is not the definition of what happened in New Jersey or what is happening in every state in this country. And by brushing these kind of actions aside; by calling them ‘political tricks’ and asserting that everyone does them offers no solution for demanding accountability from elected officials. Corruption has a trickle up effect- we turn our eyes from
something seemingly harmless (volunteering in a political campaign under false pretenses) to something larger (shutting down a bridge and endangering lives to something horrific (participating in war and killing human beings)
We shouldn’t accept any of it- regardless of how “clever or creative” the action might seem.
Corruption is never OK
Yes…I absolutely agree. We should not accept any corruption. You are right. We agree.
Here is information about my democratic opponent.
http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Articles8/Frank_Dean-Sorrell-Corruption.htm
Actually, Rhode Island is
Actually, Rhode Island is more corrupt than either, but it’s all kept pretty quiet. You can still fix a traffic ticket down there, and it costs less than the fine would be. It’s all done through the Party Machinery.
Most towns have a Democratic Machine, but in some of the posh places (Like Newport) it’s a Republican Machine. Works the same way.
There is too much
of this kind of thing that is just “common knowledge.” To believe this I would need to have factual evidence. As this is, it is just another unsubstantiated slur. Part of the swirling “government in evil” stuff.